


In the Art of War, What Are We Fighting For?

by Scrawlers



Category: Among Us (Video Game)
Genre: Gen, Vignette, nothing more graphic than what's in the game, there is some violence and some death but this is Among Us so it's to be expected
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-19
Updated: 2020-10-19
Packaged: 2021-03-09 04:40:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 610
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27099004
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Scrawlers/pseuds/Scrawlers
Summary: When embroiled in war, one must ask oneself how far they will go into savagery to defeat the savage. And once they've answered that, then they have to ask whether even that will be enough.
Comments: 1
Kudos: 11





	In the Art of War, What Are We Fighting For?

**Author's Note:**

> "How far into savagery do you go to defeat the savage" is a quote originally from the 17th Animorphs book, "The Underground", by K.A. Applegate. The style I used to write this vignette is meant to be a style reminiscent of the Animorphs books. I never thought I'd write Among Us fic, but this idea came to me and I had to write it before I forgot it. I have no regrets.

My name is Rialech-X94, but I haven't been called that for a long time now.

It's hard to know how much time has passed. There are no reliable clocks on these ships, and that's when there even are clocks at all. Most of the time there isn't. Just computers and data centers, reactors and scanners. Most crewmates don't care how much time has passed, but instead how many tasks have been completed.

Task completion is all that matters. Everything is another check on the list.

My planet—this started a long time ago, back when I was just barely small enough to sit on my parent's head. I remember that day, staring up at the bright pink sky as the ships descended, straining to see over heads as they disembarked. I didn't understand very much back then. I don't think any of us did. How could we, when they were so good at lying? How could we, when they pretended to be our friends?

Officially, this is not a war. Officially, peace talks and negotiations and treaties are happening. Officially, they are not invading our home, ravaging our planet, discarding and destroying us like we're nothing more than vermin while our government allows it to happen. Officially, we aren't— _I_ am not a soldier.

But I was just shy of three feet tall the first time I boarded a ship. My voice squeaked and cracked—not from fear, but from awkward adolescence—during my first emergency meeting. I've witnessed so much death that I still smell blood long after the corpse has been ejected. I hear phantoms scream in my ears every time I close my eye to sleep.

There are so few of us now, and it feels like every day there are fewer. The enemy outnumbers us 900 to 1, and all we can do is keep going. Keep fighting. Fighting for ourselves, for our home, for a victory I think we all know isn't likely to come, because the only support we have is each other.

But we try. We keep trying. I boarded this ship just as I boarded the last, hoping to stop, to sabotage, or at least to stall. To protect my planet—my _home_ —where those much older than me, with far more power than me, won't.

"Oh, Orange—you fixing the lights?"

I squeeze the door of the light box, smiling tightly as I look over my shoulder. It's the blue crewmate, all alone.

"Mmhm. I think it's good enough." I shut the door, and palm my pocket CPU in my other hand. Third button down center . . .

"Huh? But it's still da—whoa!" The blue crewmate jumps forward, crashing against me, as the door to electrical closes. "Why did that close—?"

Their voice cuts out in a gurgle of blood. I rip my hand, still holding my knife, out of their stomach, and use my pocket CPU to shift my appearance to mask the blood. I still smell it. I always will. But this is routine, and the crewmates' senses aren't as sharp as ours. They won't be able to tell.

Before the doors unlock, I kick open the vent in the back of the room and jump inside. This one connects to the medbay. I can pretend to inspect samples there, giving myself an alibi. Maybe I can even find a way to sabotage them.

I boarded this ship alone. Even if I kill everyone, that's only nine fewer colonizers to threaten my planet.

But nine fewer is better than none.

After making sure the coast is clear, I haul myself out of the medbay vent, and slide it quietly closed.


End file.
